Australian companies sourcing paper from Indonesia-based Asia Pulp and Paper (APP) are buying from a company that is destroying swathes of Sumatra's peat swamp forests, according to a Greenpeace report released today.
"The clearing and draining of peatlands is the key reason why Indonesia is the world's third largest greenhouse gas emitter," says the Greenpeace report on forest and peatland destruction associated with pulp and palm oil activities by Sinar Mas, the parent company of APP.
APP is the fourth largest pulp producer in the world and, according to mapping analysis by WWF, its two Sumatran pulp mills "cause more loss of rainforest than any other company on the island".
Despite "repeated claims" by APP over several years that it will soon rely solely on plantation timber, the company "continues to acquire and destroy rainforest and peatland to feed its two pulp mills in Sumatra", it says.
The report also raises concerns about APP claims about certification of its products and auditing of its mills.
APP's Australian links
In Australia, Greenpeace says PaperlinX sources some of its paper from APP, while Australia-based APP subsidiary Solaris Paper - which recently launched an APP TV advertising campaign focusing on sustainability – sells LIVI brand toilet and tissue products.
Greenpeace today wrote to PaperlinX urging it to "stop trading with companies within the Sinar Mas Group" and it has also written to APP alleging it has carried out clearing activities that are "illegal under Indonesian law".
The report notes that Woolworths is one of the companies that has already "stopped buying or selling paper products connected to APP".
The report urges all companies to "immediately drop their contracts" with the Sinar Mas group until it is no longer involved in forest and peatland destruction, through its forestry or palm oil operations.
They should also phase out palm oil and pulp products from third-party suppliers trading with Sinar Mas, it says.
"Several leading companies have already responded to Greenpeace evidence of the Sinar Mas group's illegal and destructive environmental practices in Indonesia and are cancelling their contracts with the Indonesian palm oil and paper giant," Greenpeace said in a statement accompanying the report.
"Today, [European retailer] Carrefour confirmed that it has already stopped buying from APP for its own brands and [British retailer] Tesco has announced that it will do the same by the end of the year.
"In addition, Kraft has confirmed that is phasing out APP paper and packaging, whilst Kimberly-Clark, Nestlé and Unilever are implementing new policies that will also rule out supplies from APP, unless the company and its suppliers make substantial changes," it says.
"Unilever, Kraft, and Nestlé have also dropped contracts with Golden Agri Resources (GAR), the Sinar Mas group's palm oil arm, following recent Greenpeace campaigns."
Neither Solaris or PaperlinX responded before publication time to a CE Daily request for comment.
